Improvement in operating ships  guns



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

`JAMES II. WARD, 0F `'.'IHE UNITED s'rA'rEs NAVY; -sAnAII A. WARD ADMIN- Is'rRATR-IX. on s AID WARD, DEcEAsED.

'. IMPROVEMENT |N OPERATING-SHIPS euNs.l

Sl'veeiiication forming pmt of Letters Patentl No. 42,680Qdated May 5, 1864.

.To 'all whom; :it may concern:

Be it known that LJAMES 11W-ARD, of thev United States Navy, haveinvented' a new and gun, its carriage, slide, or'ways with the breeching slack. Figs'. 3 and 4 representa top plan of thecarriage `and its slide or ways,

the gun being removed toshow the parts underneath it.. Fig. 5 represents an elevation of the frontend of the carriage. ,"Fig. G'repre- .sents aside elevation 'of the gun, its carriage, and trucks, with'the breeching peut. Fig. 7

represents a 'top plan of a turntablewith the ways and tail-piece for turning and shifting lthe gun from oneside to the opposite one of the vessel.v Fig. 8 represents a side elevation Similar Aletters of reference,'when they cur 1in thefsepaxate'gures, denotelike parts in all the drawings.

f vThe objectand'purpose ofthis invention are, ,frst, to Aso apply the rolls and supports under,-

lgneath'the rails, slide, or ways on which the "gun and carriage runs in and out and is trained,

and at or nearthe center thereof, as that the "slide onways shall ltip' when the excess of -tv eight is on either side of said rolls or center' support; also', in combining, with the shipping jways or slide on which the .gun and carriage is run in and out `and trained, a'tail-piece connected thereto, but removable therefrom, and

resting upon the deck when in use, for the purpose of readily mounting the gun and carriage uponl the slide or rails, when by the recoil o r other causes they should be off of the slide; also, to the use of an elastic ring, one or-more,

in 'connection' with the breeching, to more gradually ltake upandcheck the recoil of the Toenable others skil ed in the art tomake,

and use' this invention, t e subjoined description, in 4 connection with the accompanying drawings, 'isreferred to. Of the slide, a is the wing; b, thethick piece;

. e, therail; d', the nose; e, the outer transom:

f, the innertransoin, andg the middle transom; h., theshoes bolted'up beneath the fore. axle-tree, -and forming a recess, i i, in which the thick pieces of the slide run when the earriage is on the slideyand the shoes rest on the i wings. If theshoes were between and not be-l neath the axle-tree, the recesses iwould nec y -.essarily be cut wholly outof the axletree.

Under the middle transom, directlybeneath Lthe rails, I fix a pair ofr lignum-vitae blocks,

or for the slide of a heavygun, a 4pair of conical rollers, which I call the middle bearingblock or rollers (See k, Figs. 1 and. 3.) They are intended to sustain the middle of the slideas high from the decks as the brassbear ing-plates b, Figs. 1 and 3, to be placed under the fore transom to sustain that end of the slideg-and if .these middle and outer bearersstandout from .beneath their respective middle andouter'transoms an inch or halt' an inch,

fas it is'intended they shall, it follows that when the slide rests by those bearers upon a level deck, the hind transolns will forsake thev deck by an inch or half an inch, as the case may be, and asis seen in Fig. 1. It also fol- .'lows thatwhen the hind end of the slide is depressed by any'force to the deck the slide'will tip on theucenter bearing, and the fore end of its bearers will forsake the deck', as is seen in Fig. 6; It furthermorerfollows that when the hind end ofthe slide is so depressed to the deck the fore ends of the shoes will easily run on the hind 'ends of the wings if they be chauifered a little, bywhich means the carriage is readily and easily, vwithoutlifting, gt'onto the slide, as it is seen iu Fig. 6, in which the fore trucksv and the rollers on the tails are both in action at'once. Again, it follows that -when thecarriage is run entirely o'nto the slide and theA gun is out to battery'the slide will tip with its y fore bearings to. the deck, and` the` hind-transom from the deck andthe truck .-ofv the 'carriage will forsake the deck' by an inch orhalf an inch, as the caseA may be. f In otherwrds, by this arrangement of the bearings and hind transom a gun weighing 'several ,tons is easily lifted-may be said, in fact, to lift itself-with its trucks half an inch or an inch from ,the,deck. Again, when the gun is red and recoils in as the weight' passes back of the'center bearing, the slide gently and iin- `perceptibly tips with the hind transoms to -whicha carriage and heavy describedthe fixed roller-hanu u 6, and tofa'cilitate the movement o "t;lfiegear` contact with 'the deck vto ease the recoil, whichis `thus rendered kind upon the-brechings, the carriage, .and the deck; and whenv the gunvis run back off the slide onto thedeck,

instead ofthe enormous vweight falling with an .inj urious surgean" inch in `distance from' the slide to thedecks, as it'wonld but'for the tip, itfalls easily and gently .as Ait had risen Agairnyby4 this arrangement, `while "the end y bearings .alternately forsake'theidecks, the

center. bearing neverv ean`,.however uneven the decks may be; hence, .the'eenter'lof the'slide.` 'being alwayss'upported,the slide, though made very slender and light,'can never spring .or set?y tle i n the middle, as all `long-@slides mostco'mf monl-y do, :even although. to .prevent Ait made of a weight objectionablein ships.; ,'If the slide be so short, asin the oase of light shortguns,

as not to admit of a ,iniddle bearing',,then the. shoes/beneath the'hind-axle-tree must be a half inch thicker than j they. are ,beneath. the

fore axletree, and the hind end ofthe .slide a' half inch less inV thickness v'than' thefore end,

- so that the carriageV may 'be ,easilyjgotinthe slide, and when-on allthe trucks beahalfinch clearof the j deck .for training. 'I his feature is material as aidingto getthe trucks arhalf.. inch clear of the' decks without the `labor of lifting al heavy gun.- This slide, vas'th'ns '1 de- .scribed and represented, I claim' to -be''a vnew` and original invention of my o'wnMhex-e Ait is',

specified ass'nch, and di'eringfroin any other 'slide-kas' shorter', therefore) occupying less' room on deckgfas lighter, becauseamere skeleton, thereforel burde'ning" a,..slip51ess; fas strong 'and sti, though. lightandrop'en, be-y cause of the thick middlejj bearingwas -j less likely to swellfand warp, because of. the 'small :quantity of material, thefurnbe .offpieces', ,y and. their disposition; as more open, .therefore vless damaging to the decks, becausethey. dry quicker beneath the slide;` and, above fall,' o"n4 account of the greater ease and readineswith o n this than on 'any 4other s ide, which ease' and readiness, If repeat, dire, "in 'arg1-eat"A measure, to the middle bearingonwhich the slide tips, or to the adjustmet fofthe shoes neath the axleLtree. But witlrfthevshort slide' ik'e riage by separating the frictionsrfacesviz., the bottoms of thc shoes and topsofthe wings-l would run oft` the rails, and thusbecome of no' "-eect. To prevent this I introduce, as a new and .original invention not Vheretofore de scribed, a tail-piece, which is afframe, n,

.in Figs..1, 3, and 6, temporarily. attached by any convenient method to the slide, but so'as to ship and unship at pleasure. l Usually it, hooks, or lelse it keys up ,by two 'forks vQsee o, Fig. l) to a rod across between the thick pieces of thc slide and the frame, so arranged as to elongate or prolong the rails as muchas nec- 4essalry to sustain the roller-handspike in a n maybe gotl Iwringing pojsitin, as n; is ,on in -fnig'awhn gun fis outtohattery `a' ndlsecured.

-weigh .ve and .it Vis 4in'iportant to break' linenand Irun' out violent1y.-,l 'ygravity;l

rthe ship, the breaching, andthe. llxiltslilip du@ the'shk end' mais v ringg. Figs. 1, 3,3!!5 mg ing ofthel gun', b0.b0cause,' unlike the .In'order tjona ranged. Itis composed'flw'llafille "rails, to correspond in sizeyheight, 8ms, with' the tailand 8.) A pair Ofbthsr:v ha, unitel theA the 'giur runs" back. on' .thertlj'li-,tablejThe 'shifted' by hand to the' other side, the ing-rails dropped with lthe hook in place-atb,

ready for use, and lthefrails doubled. back on the hinge a, so that b'cwill lay on a c,- and this turned fore and aftyoeoupies veryI little room. This combinationof the slide andthe turnmcnt, superiorto anylother `method or. the

the' gun is, as there i represented,v .into a taut l 4lil'lling-i11f\.11zz1 i011e 'foot within the-port; but thetailtnf is'wholly removable when the. y

In lied ofthehingedblock tfirfnn the gun out g against, 'heretofore described sind 'publish'ed,"1.

introduce-jan india-rubberbuer, p, Figs.l '.1 ,'and'hand, against which,fpfhenthe gun ,isI "run ont, the shock; of running out is. broken',` 'p to th e'gre'at1-v relief of both `,the ship and. y riage. (Bee it represented, pi," in'Fi'gs ./.1 and 3,v and 6;) fllt'is so-placed von .th'ezslidet 'at.the.,.

fore axl'etree strikes'lfandbrings the, carriage1-l vthe blowofsogreat-avtqeghaespecially when -l itis a lee gun', ,and'liableto get away from the,

frordutheshqek and strainer reco'nnponf Y A e nsal train-tackle to the 'hind axle-tree forrunninga grin' inair finf' taeklejto` the {foi-e axle-tree, from.- the hind l ena Vif .the tan-piece, which in-merle aiways directly. .and never Yobliqnely'-froni fthe 1 gun, however obliqueto the beaml the train* inner. bloclrvoffthe` train-tackl'eA hooked "tofaj stationary ring-.boltfn thedeclc,jthe;ipner fbloclr "of, the iii-tackle;` being-,fhookedto the1 tail-piece, mo'v'es around withfit in :training The'sheave in, Fig. 5, foreaxle'ftree, isjfortheg entretient# vsaid tu a shifting'igunginteded-wybaedv uniting-rails iiftfrom' che hqqkf an b lmi the fhinge at a, the gun is turned around, the slide' the gun run o' `theturntable onto its'slide,

table I claim as anew andvaluableim rovesame purpose, because'-1i'ghter, quicker, less liable to dercngement, less costly," and leaving the gun capable'of use even although the slide land turn-table or either of them wcre'broken.

Hdvingthus-fully described thenature, 0b'

- ject, and purpose ofthe invention, what -is claimed as new therein, 'andffor which Letters Patent is asked, is-

'1. So applying the rolls and supportsuntral support, substantially inthe manner and 'for the purpose-set forth.

2 Incombination with the tipping slide, ways., or mils on 'which the gun and carriage are worked, the tailpi-ececonnected thereto,

but removable at pleasure, said tail-piece resting uponthe gun-deck when in use, for the purpose of readilyvmounting thegun and carlria-ge on the slide, substantially as described..

' 3. In combination with the breeching or breech-tackle for catching and restraining the recoil of the gun..the elastic ring for gradually checking the strain on the breeching, subst-antially as described.

4. In combination with the tipping slide and tail-piece. a. turn-table for" turning and shifting the gun from one port to another, or

from one 'side of the -ship to the other, lsubstantially as described. v

' v J. H. WARD.-

Witnesses: J. W. SMYTH,

Trios. M. CASH. 

